Entering the final two weeks of the season, Julio Jones of the Atlanta Falcons and Antonio Brown of the Pittsburgh Steelers find themselves within 27 receptions of Marvin Harrison’s single-season record of 143.
At 118, Jones already has the 11th-highest single-season rate in NFL history, while Brown ranks tied for 15th at 116.
In 1995, Herman Moore, Cris Carter, Jerry Rice and Isaac Bruce all had 119 or more catches, which means all four rank in the top 10 all time. But that’s about to change, and in no other season in NFL history have multiple receivers put up numbers as monstrous as that.
Could Jones or Brown make a run at Harrison’s mark? It isn’t likely, but it’s possible.
In order to break the record, Jones would need to average 13 catches over the next two weeks, while Brown would have to average 14. That gives Jones a natural edge, and it might help that his quarterback is pulling for him.
“I’d love to see him get [the NFL record], that’s for sure,” said Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan this week, per ESPN.com. And there’s certainly a chance. With how productive he’s been and how good he’s played all year, there’s definitely a chance that he could do that in the next two games. But it just doesn’t come up a lot in the locker room.”
It’s not as though the Falcons have much to lose. And they should have plenty of chances to throw if they fall behind against Carolina before having a chance to feast on the Saints’ terrible defense in Week 17.
Brown’s Steelers can’t afford to focus on padding his personal stats as they fight for playoff positioning, although you never know with season-closing matchups against inferior opponents Baltimore and Cleveland.
But they’d still have to go on unprecedented tears. Jones has caught 13 passes just once in his career, so it’s hard to imagine him doing so in back-to-back weeks. Meanwhile, Brown has actually caught 16-plus passes twice this season, but he’s never caught more than 27 passes in a two-game span. So asking for 28 is a reach.
Regardless, it’s attainable for both, which is amazing considering the issues both of their teams have had at the quarterback position.
